Stabilizer for wide pressure planes



July 3, 1951 D. K. WARNER STABILIZER FOR WIDE PRESSURE PLANES 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 26, 1947 .1i I, l

I INVENTOR July 3, 1951 D. K. WARNER STABILIZER FOR WIDE PRESSURE PLANES 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed June 26, 1947 INVENTOR \wQ mun July 3, 1951 D. K! WARNER 2,559,036

STABILIZER FOR WIDE PRESSURE PLANES Filed June 26, 1947 3 Sheets-Sheet 3,

INVENTOR Patented July 3, 1951 UNITED STATES PATT OFFICE STABILIZER FOR WIDE PRESSURE PLANES Douglas K. Warner, Sarasota, Fla.

Application June 26, 1947, Serial No. 757,081

The object of this invention is to provide means for establishing aerodynamic balance in pressure planes of any aspect ratio and to improve starting efficiency by reusing the velocity energy derived from expanding compressed air from beneath a plane, to not only give propulsion and suction lift over the top surface thereof after it has lifted the plane by pressure beneath the wing, but also to expend all the energy in the exhaust jet in aiding the planes propulsion fans in compressing more air to higher pressures.

Heretofore the rear wing of the pressure plane has been relied upon to take enough load as a plane leaves a surface to balance the forward shift of center of pressure of the pressure supported central section of the plane as that OP moves from 59% of chord to 25% of chord.

As in a wide pressure plane the lift of the central, or pressure supported, portion of the plane is the major lift in high flight as well as while skimming, means such as are described herewith are essential to keep the center of pressure back at 59% of chord in high flight. This invention by giving as high air velocities over the rear portion of the wing as over the forward portion and by giving as low velocities and as high pressures under the rear portion of the wing as under the fore portion and by extending the wing area forwardly in skimming flight and by giving that forwardly located area a high lift from air pressure under the wing the center of pressure away from ground effect remains the same as when skimming and advantage can then be taken of the ability of the pressure plane to take off from any beach or shallow or deep bay with ten or more times conventional wing loading. It is therefore unnecessary to use a narrow central section with low induced drag efficiency in order to make it possible for the rear wings to stabilize the plane in flight.

The conventional propulsion jet during-the average takeoff run has a propulsion efficiency of if the average plane speed during that run is 50 M. P. H. and the jet speed 1000 M. P. H.

When that jet is delivered over the leading edge of the plane at less than sonic speed and when it goes back into the fans which created it practically all of that usually lost 95% is recovered in addition to giving the plane during the entire takeoff run a pressure lift below the wing and a suction lift above it of more than ten times the lift that the conventional plane has at the end of the takeoff run.

Referring to the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of the top of the plane.

Fig. 2 is a front view of plane. Fig. 3 is a cross section of plane through 3-3 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a side sectional View of plane thru 4-4 Fig. 2 as the plane appears in high flight, and Fig. 5 is a section on the opposite side of one of the propulsion fans of Fig. 2 at 5-5 showing the structure of craft behind upwardly moving fan blades. It will be noted that Fig. 5 is taken thru a section where the blades of the pressure fan are moving upwardly while Fig. 4 is a section where the blades are moving downwardly and where the flow correcting airfoil 3| of Fig. 5 is not required and a swept back passage 29 is provided instead. Fig. 6 is a sectional view thru B-6 of Fig. 2. Fig. 7 shows the forward portion of Fig. 6 with front flap I in the act of folding back.

Fig. 8 is a side sectional view of rear central portion of plane thru 88 Fig. 1 showing rear flaps and adjustable slots. Fig. 9 is a cross sectional view at 9-9 of Fig. 1.

The fundamental principle of the pressure plane has been described in Patents 2,362,578, 2,387,627, 2,364,676, 2,364,677, 2,390,859 as a means of continued flight close to the sea supported principally by air compressed beneath the plane or as a means of take off with loads which could never be carried on landing gears or flying boat hulls. Flight is preferably started from a field or beach or shallow water'swamp and, for added length of run, finished over a bay or lake at a speed which makes depth of water unimportant. If start must be made from deep water the loading is restricted primarily because of the wave action set up-by blowing the water down and plane up.

Because the pressure plane can take off safely with wing loadings of 1000 pounds per sq. ft. it can fly economically near sea level at 600 miles per hr. or 78% the speed of sound while other planes which must take off at M. P. H have their maximum flight efliciency at M. P. H. and at 600 M. P. H. near sea level must operate with a higher profile drag than if they carried sixteen times the gross load which means that they must have mcre than 16 times the power they would have needed had they been able to take off as the pressure plane does. The wide pressure plane does not have the disadvantageous hump characteristic of the earlier narrow pressure planes and conventional flying boat hulls, this being due primarily to greater width and to the reduction in the induced drag coefiicient to 1 &% that of conventional high flying airfoils.

In Fig. 1 it may be seen that the central section of the plane shown is substantially square in plan form and has rear stabilizing wings I8 preceded by auxiliary airfoils I9 above and ahead of l8 to prevent the latter wings from stalling at 45 degree attack angles. The front stabilizers 20 are fitted with pivoted elevons 2| for climb or bank.

Fig. 2 shows the high dihedral angle of the front stabilizers 2 and the elevons 2| high enough to be away from wave contact at start of takeoff run, and it also shows the main rear wings, I8, far behind the front stabilizers and set at an attack angle of only about 1 as compared with the much higher angle of the front stabilizers as explained in Patent 2,462,578 of Feb. 22, 1949 and in my Patent 2,418,380. I

Fig. 3 is a thin cross section at 3-3 of Fig. 1 showing the front stabilizers and the air passage arrangements back of the propulsion fans. Behind thedown moving fan blades of Fig. 4 is the enlarging air passage 29 shown by dotted lines in Fig. 6, and behind the upmoving blades in Figs. 5 and 6 is seen cambered airfoil 3i deflecting the air (which those blades have thrown upwardly) back down again, and there also is seen the diffusing passage 69 taking part of that upmoving air and compressing it in the engine compartment 3? by diffusion in 69. In Fig. 6 a1SO we can se the diffusion that takes place in passage 30 which creates a high air pressure beneath the airplane and since this air can not escape under runners 40 and M or under front double hinged flaps I and 3 or rear flaps Id it must be all directed rearwardly at the leading edge of the plane in passage 42 under deflector 44 as seen in Fig. 6 because at that time the airfoils 5i? and 52 are closed blocking passage of air out of the 4 rear slots which they create when opened as in the flight positions of Fig.

4. This air leaving passage 42 at extreme velocity 5 over airfoil It gives a high suction lift over this front part of the wing before the craft starts to move and this air with still high residual velocity enters fan 25 and part of the air is then blown (without any loss in that energy but instead with a gain in fan efiiciency by preventing stallof fan blades) under the plane again, and partis blown out slot 550. to create more lift over the top of the plane further rearward, and to give forward thrust. Since part of the air which would normally go up out of slot 56 is caught and defiec'ted'down by airfoil 3I and since more is entrapped in diffuser 69, for use in the engine which as shown in previous patents exhausts into the compressed air below the plane, most of the air goes into the pressure chamber below after being compressed by diffusing in passages 89 and 3c, and then is returned with very little energy loss to the propulsion fans again.

The main front flap I is hinged or swung on leading edge tube 2 and the several flaps 3 shown divided in many small units in Fig. 2 are hinged at lower end 5 of flap I in a trailing position. A light tubular rubber covered roller I is mounted in the lower end of each of flaps 3 to reduce wear while moving over pavement.

These flaps I and 3 are held from being blown forward by arm 6 which at one end is hinged at hinge 5, connecting flaps I and 3, and at its opposite end I is hinged at the end of arm 8 Whose opposite end is keyed to or locked on shaft 9 which is turned by arm Ill mounted thereon.

Crank arm I0 is pivoted to connecting rod I2 at bearing II which is pushed forward by piston I3 by compressed air in cylinders I4 fed by transverse pipe I5 which extends inside airfoil I6 the thereof after the air pressure below the plane has been diminished by the escape of air under flap Hi and out the 4 rear slots.

Fig. 7 shows flap I being blown back as arms 6 and 8 fold at 'I and when they are blown fully back flaps I and 3 form part of the lower surface of the airfoil I6, as shown in Fig. 4, a recess having been left in the lower portion of IE to house these flaps. At the same time deflector ie is closed by conventional means not shown. Now the air speed over I6 is maintained by the forward motion of the plane with the blunt leading edge 2 displacing air and by the suction created by fans 25. With fiaps down, in the early part of the take-off run, the baffle 43 helps turn the air rearwardly keeping it close to the top of I6.

To maintain high yaw stability even before the plane starts to move ahead, the tips 59 of the rear wings I8 are bent up around the path of the tips of propeller blades 22 forming a trough 23 with the outer wall of wing cabin 6i], and the inner wall of wing cabin, 60a, forms an arc aboutinner propellers 22a thus providing 3 upright surfaces at the rear outermost extremities of the plane over which air moves with the speed at which it leaves the propeller tips and, since these propellers are chordwise central of the trough in which they turn, they give twice the lift of trough type wings where the propellers are at the rear of the trough as shown by Matta in 1915 and tested by the Air Forces in 1948.

The propellers are driven by engines not shown, mounted in depended wing tip nacelles 62 below the tips of stub wings 83 which in turn are mounted atop of housings 60. The blades turn upwardly in front of these stub wings increasing the lift thereof because they are close to it as they could not efficiently be close if the down moving blades also passed in front of the wing.

Behind the upmoving propeller blades and below stub wings 63 are cambered airfoils 54 set at higher attack angle than $3 and extending between nacelles I52 and cabin walls 68. These deflect some 'of the upwardly moving air from the propeller blades back down over the wing below to help increase the velocity there, but by diffusion also decrease the air velocity below the stub wings 63 to give high pressure beneath them and this pressure is further increased by the outwardly sloping wall 62a of nacelle t2 and the oppositely sloping wall SI of cabin 68 thus entirely enclosing the air passing between 63 and 64 with 4 walls all tapered to diffuse the air and increase its pressure under wing 53.

Tests at Langley Field tow basin showed that thus increasing the pressure under an airfoil behind upmoving propeller blades greatly increased plane efiiciency.

Under the rear of stub wing 63 is flap having end plates 66 extending down as low as the bottom of nacelles 62. Slots are formed in the nacelles rear portion to receive flap 65 and its end plate. If an engine stops or if additional rear lift is needed theseflaps 65 are moved'back and down by conventional means not shown as taught by Fowler. This gives a very great lift half the plane length rearward of the center of gravity. When the plane is landing at a 45 attack angle with the propellers turning at maximum speed 1 these lowered flaps make the propeller blast go straight down as in a helicopter after first giving a high wing lift and increasing the drag to slow the plane.

The pilot wings I9 are also swivelled with the leading edge down 30 when the plane is landing at this high attack angle. The air in front of wings l8 unable because of the ground to go under those wings is caught by pilot Wing I9 and deflected down over the top of it so that with the aid of the propellers l8 does not stall but gives enormous lift and drag to make the landing safer when the trailing edge hits the water. On the other hand the front stabilizers now stall even tho the elevon at their tips may be turned down enough to prevent their stalling and to let them 1 still be effective. The stall of the front stabilizer prevents the wing from flopping back over. The conventional flying wing as it lands finds the CP moved suddenly back due to ground effect and is apt to nose into the ground but that can not happen here as the C. G. is way back.

Referring to Fig. 6 we see how air enters fan over stationary spinner 28 under cowling 26 and past vanes 29 connecting 28 with locations in the top surface of It at each side of each trough formed therein to let air smoothly approach the fan tip circles. In the NACA model one fan was placed forward of its neighbor so that the blades could overlap and thereby get more power in a given space. Air from downwardly moving fan blades pass thru passages 89 under dotted line in Fig. 6 said passages having a gradually increasing cross-sectional area rearwardly. Air from upwardly moving fan blades passes vertical vanes 30a and horizontal vanes 3| therebetween and continues thru diffusing passage 30 under floor 32 of engine room 31. Vanes 3| and vanes 35 further back in passage are cambered and set at high attack angles so that air below them will be deflected at higher velocity below to increase the lift over I6 and to increase the pressure by reducing the velocity under surface 32 and similar action is found at diffusers 40, 41, 53 and 54.

When starting the plane, diffusing passage 30 is lengthened by airfoil 81 with its leading portion 86 tipped up and trailing edge down to form a continuation of IE. Compressed air then passes forwardly under 38 to slot passage 42 to return the air to the fans.

In Fig. 8 the trailing flap 14 is enlarged together with airfoil 52. Flap M swivels on compressed air tube 15 and is pressed down by pin 19 mounted in the lower end of connecting rod 78 which is pinned in piston 11 in cylinder 16 to which compressed air is delivered thru port 80 in tube 15.

As in the case of flaps 3 the rear flap 14 is divided in many units as shown in Fig. '1 in order that each may ride separately over the wave beneath.

Airfoil 52 like is swiveled down in high flight as shown in Fig. 8 to form two slots directing air rearwardly at high velocity over the top surface. To reach the slots formed by vane 50 when it is swiveled clockwise at 5| air passes up the passage behind diffuser 49.

The cambered airfoils 53 and 54 are approximately at the lower surface of wing I8 where the spars are located. These air-foils carry the I tension in the bottom surface over to that in the opposite wing while the compressive stress is carried across thru the body of the plane.

The laterally disposed rear wings l8 have little lift compared to that of the pressure chamber while skimming but considerable in flight compared therewith and since its attack angle is less than that of the central portion as in all previous pressure planes its lift becomes proportionally larger as attack angle increases stabilizing the plane in pitching moment.

Behind the top of fan blades 25 are airflow straightening vanes 56 tieing fan cowling 26 to top surface 51 of plane. Over the upward moving fan blades the cowling 26 is extended further rearward as shown at 6| Fig. 1 in order to deflect down and rearwardly the up driving air. The blast rearward is relatively more intense at slow speeds and since the blast is mostly over the fore part of the top surface it helps in keeping the C. P. forward at that time.

The down curved runners 40 and 4| cause the air to move downwardly as it rushes sidewise to escape under the runners but the lateral air velocity is insignificant compared to that under a wing without runners so the induced drag is much lower as was indicated in the NACA tests.

After takeoff part of the air compressed in diffuser 69 is jetted out of slot 73 to increase rear lift on top surface.

Exhaust from the engines is delivered from nozzles 1| beneath the plane to augment the energy of air compressed there. In high flight it may be carried in pipes not shown back to slot 13 to augment the blast above the top surface.

Such large craft as are made possible by wing loadings of 1000 pounds per sq. ft. must have large concentrations of power even though the power required per pound carried is only 1% that normally required. Fans permit this power concentration when spread across the full span and the power may be even greater by overlapping fans with every other one ahead of its neighbor and of course turning oppositely to its neighbor to prevent sonic disturbances where blades overlap. To gain the full advantage of pressure principle loads of 50,000 tons should be flown.

I claim:

1. In an airplane, a main airfoil extending the approximate full length of said plane and runners depended from the sides thereof, and flaps flexibly depended from approximately the leading and trailing edges thereof, a rearwardly directed slot at the leading edge of said plane communicating with the space directly behind said front flap and all space beneath said plane, fans rearward of said slot and spaced therefrom and top lifting surface located therebetween, a passage of rearwardly increasing cross-sectional area communicating between said fans and the space beneath said airplane, rearwardly directed slots in the top rear surface of said plane communicating with the space beneath and airfoils pivotally mounted and independently operated in wardly to form a dihedral angle for lateral sta- 'bility,'pilot wings pivotally mounted forwardly and above said rear wings of approximately 18% the main lateralwings chord,and a like-distance above and ahead of :said'wings, and smaller airfoil 'sta 'lizers extended from the forward :por-

tions of sai'dwunners set at: higher attack angles than'saidrear wings and designed to. stall ibefore the-niain wing and rear wing canstall.

125 In an: airplane as described in claim 1, airfo'iis pivcted at their -approximate Mgchord point from the leadingedge at the tips of saidifor- Wardly locatedstabilizer airfoils, said first airfoils'normally held atzero attack angle but defiected downward-on one side -to tipthat side down and drag it'back for the purposeJof'bank and turn, and-operated together upwards or downwards to'cl-imb or descend, and pairs'of propellers mounted above each rear wing, andihous- "ing erected on said; rear wings between said 'propellers with sides conforming to the lower arc of the tip circle of said propellers, stub wings above said housing with downturned tips, rear wing tips bent up around the outer propeller circle and continued upwardly outwardly to the approximate height ofthe propeller circle, nacelles extending rearwardly straight in a gradually flattening vertical'side on the side furthest'from'said housing and sloping rearwardly outwardly on the sides next the housing and the housing itself converging rapidly to a trailing, vertical, backwardly,- dcwnwardly sloping edge, an extendible and-"downwardly, rearwardly, sloping flap having endplates extended down from 1 its tips.

"3. An aircraft comprising an airfoil having approximately straight leading edge and an ap- 'proximately-rectangular plan form, runners depended from lateral extremities of said airfoil, flaps depended from-forward and. rearward ex tremities of said aircraft whereby a chamber is formed beneath'sai'd airfoil which-is open below except as it may be closed by ground or water surface beneath said-airfoil, fans within said airfoil and passagesleading forwardly from said fans to above said airfoil and passages leading rearwardly from said fans to beneath saidairfo'il whereby air-is drawn from above and discharged beneath said airfoiL-an air deflecting membenconnected to said forwardly depended flap at its upper extremity and supportedon said aircraft with-said flap at said forward extremity and between said runners and said deflecting member at its uppermost extremity extended above said leading edge of said airfoil whereby air blown under-said airfoil by saidfans when said aircraft is on ground or water may moveiforwardlly beneath said airfoil and upwardly in front of the leading edge thereof and be deflected back over the upper surface of said airfoilby said deflecting member athigh velocity to .said passages leading forwardly from said fans whereby a lift is derived from the air pressure beneath said airfoil and from a high air velocity vover thetop surface of said airfoil resulting from therelease of said air pressure under the upper extremity of said deflecting member and whereby the residual velocity energy of saidiair released .over said leading edge is recaptured by .said fans with resulting increase infan efficiency.

4. The aircraft of claim 3 including a pivoted airfoil below said main airfoil which when in a steeply inclined position forms an extension of the lower surface of the said passages leading rearwardly from said fans and means for turning said: airfoil to horizontal position.

5. An aircraft as claimed in claim 3 including means forming'rearwardly directed slots inthe 'rearitopcsurface of sa-id airfoil, passageways extending, downwardly from said slots'thru said air- .foil "and "communicating #withthe space ,below said airfoil, adjustable means in said slot 1passageways. whereby slots over the rear: portion of said airfoil a may be' closed 1 when closeto' a surface andiwhen airjfrom' beneath is being deflected "back 2 over .said leading edge, and whereby *said rear slots may be opened and said front -zflaps be retracted to form the' lowerforwardsurface ref-said airfoil and said deflecting member also retracted to form ;part of the forward Surfaceiof said airfoil.

6. The aircraft of claim 3-said front-fiapjpivotally depended adjacentthe leading edge of said airfoil, jointed control arms-pivotally mounted at ithelowerextremity of said flap van'd'inisaid airfoil, a crank arm connected with said control armand pivotallymounted inn said airfoil and .rneans ifor turning ":SEid crank? arm whereby tone control. arm rigidly connected with said crank arm causes said flap to moveTfroma-iposition adjacent to and'forming' thebottom of said airfoil. to a depended position by "means of its jointed connection with said otheriicontrol arm.

"7. The aircraft of claim 3, :a diffusing, rearwardly expanding passage sloped downwardly, rearwardly comprising said passages leading rearwardly, airfoils positioned ininsaid passages rearward-of said fans and space'diadjacent the upper wall surfaces of said passages, said airfo'ils being camber-ed and havingitheir leading :edges nearer the upperzwall of said passages than the trailing edges of said airfoils whereby air moving thru said passages-is slowed .:down adjacent the upper wall thereof and the pressure thereunder thereby increased -an'd'wallfriction decreased: and whereby the air'velocity over the lower wa'll of said passages is increased-with further increase in lift for said aircraft.

I 8. The aircraft of claim'3said passages leading forwardly from said fans having grad-ually decreasing cross-sectional area forwardly, air from above said craft entrained in the saidhigh velocity air leavi-ng said' 'deflecting member and said entrained air and -the recirculated air both diffused in said passages leading to saidfans and the=pressure thereof thereby increase'd before reaching said-fans.

DOUGLAS K. WARNER.

REFERENCES CITED The following "references are of'recordin the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1 ;69'6;404 Kluse Dec. 25, 1928 1,731,666 .--'Jackson Oct. 15, 1929 1,801,356 .Lovela'nd Apr. 21, 1931 1,990,308 :Phillips Feb. 15, 1935 2,254,435 :Irwin Sept. .2, 1941 2,364,676 Warner Dec. :.12, 1944 2364 677 Warner Dec. 12, 1944 .;':2;375',265 Wagner .May 8, 1945 2,387,627 2Warner Oct. 23,1945 2,390,859 Warner Dec. 11,1945 2,418,380 Warner 'Apr.1,'1947 FOREIGN PATENTS 7 Number Country Date 686,936 France Apr. 21, 1930 49,917 France June 6, 1939 (Addition to 796,140) 

